Patients charged up to $185 for half-hour medical appointments

The cost of seeing a doctor is set to keep climbing, with some Melbourne clinics charging up to $185 for a 30 minute appointment, and many families are being short changed by Medicare rebates.

Victorian medical clinics are charging up to $185 for a 30 minute appointment, as health authorities warn the cost of seeing a doctor is set to keep climbing.

A Sunday Herald Sun investigation has revealed doctors’ fees across the State for a standard consult of up to 15 minutes range from zero at bulk billing clinics and $40 at low-cost clinics, to $90 in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs and an eye-watering $110 at one inner-city medical centre, before Medicare rebates.

Most standard appointments at private family clinics averaged between $70 and $90, with Medicare rebates of $37, leaving patients with significant out-of-pocket costs, our investigation found.

But it’s “long” appointments of up to half-an-hour — sometimes demanded by clinics for new patients — where the costs are highest, with some clinics charging $80 and others more than double that, before Medicare rebates of about $73.

Long appointments are often required when patients have multiple or complex problems, including mental health issues.

RACGP president Dr Harry Nespolon says costs have kept climbing.

Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) president Harry Nespolon said fees differed from practice to practice and out-of-pocket costs for patients kept growing.

“General practices determine billing policies and consultation fees that enable them to provide high-quality general practice services,” he said.

“Unfortunately, decisions such as the Medicare index freeze mean that the value of patient rebates are lower than ever so patient out of pocket costs are increasing year on year.

“Unless government funding keeps pace with the costs of providing care the pressures on general practice will grow and this cost will be passed on to patients. No one wins in that scenario, we need to ensure all people can see a GP if they need to.”

Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner Karen Cusack said the Medicare Benefits Scheme (MBS) determined the rebates general practitioners (GPs) could claim if they bulk billed.

“However, GPs are not required to bulk bill and can set their fees according to their own billing practices,” she said.

The Sunday Herald Sun discovered one Melbourne CBD medical clinic which charged by the minute and advertised a price range of $95 to $110 for a standard appointment, $160 to $185 for a long appointment and $230 to $255 for an extended appointment of more than 30 minutes, before Medicare rebates.

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The clinic also says “medical consumables used as part of your treatment may attract a separate fee.”

The Australian Medical Association (AMA) said clinic fees varied for a number of reasons, including rental costs, wages, equipment and infrastructure costs and stressed Medicare rebates did not cover the cost of providing care.

As well as healthcare card holders and pensioners, children and people in financial difficulty or with chronic and complex conditions were bulk-billed at the discretion of doctors at some clinics the Sunday Herald Sun found.